SS Creteboom - Concrete Boat in Moy Estuary near Ballina c
Concrete ships sound like an April fools joke, but in fact there were many examples built in the last hundred and fifty years. Most were built during times of war when steel and timber supplies were scarce. The disadvantages of concrete boats are many; they are heavier, more costly to construct and as the walls are thicker their carrying capacity is much less. The advantages are that much less steel is required. The fact that they are heavy, robust and difficult to dispose of means that although they are no longer sailing the seas, a lot of the ships built still survive as breakwaters.
In Ireland the SS Creteboom lies unused in the river Moy near Ballina, County Mayo. It was one of twelve ships constructed during the First World War for use as tug boats, to tow barges filled with supplies of Iron Ore from Northern Spain to Britain. It was built by the Wear Concrete Building Company in England in 1919.
SS Creteboom - Concrete Boat in Moy Estuary near Ballina c
Concrete ships sound like an April fools joke, but in fact there were many examples built in the last hundred and fifty years. Most were built during times of war when steel and timber supplies were scarce. The disadvantages of concrete boats are many; they are heavier, more costly to construct and as the walls are thicker their carrying capacity is much less. The advantages are that much less steel is required. The fact that they are heavy, robust and difficult to dispose of means that although they are no longer sailing the seas, a lot of the ships built still survive as breakwaters.
In Ireland the SS Creteboom lies unused in the river Moy near Ballina, County Mayo. It was one of twelve ships constructed during the First World War for use as tug boats, to tow barges filled with supplies of Iron Ore from Northern Spain to Britain. It was built by the Wear Concrete Building Company in England in 1919.